GuidesGuide
SEO Content Brief Template: What to Include
A good content brief is a decision document, not a word-count target. It tells the writer or SEO workflow who the page serves, what evidence it can use, what it must not claim, and how success will be reviewed.
The six fields every brief needs
- Audience and stage
- Primary task and page promise
- Evidence and source requirements
- Structure and supporting questions
- Canonical internal journey
- Review owner and publication gate
Do not manufacture certainty
Do not add made-up volume, traffic targets, ranking promises, or competitor claims just to make a brief look complete. Mark unknown fields as unknown. Transparent briefs give authors room to be accurate and editors a way to challenge assumptions.
Step-by-step
- 1
Describe the reader
Name the audience and context in plain language, including the problem they are trying to solve.
- 2
State the page promise
Write one sentence describing what the reader will understand or do after reading. Narrow promises until the page can honestly deliver them.
- 3
List evidence and boundaries
Add verified facts, source links, approved examples, and topics to avoid. Separate provider observations, estimates, and first-party measurements.
- 4
Plan the information architecture
Create an H2 outline, supporting questions, examples, and descriptive links. Give the page one clear purpose so it does not duplicate a commercial owner.
- 5
Define the review checklist
Check accuracy, originality, rights, accessibility, metadata, links, schema, and calls to action before publishing.